What's Hot: Good protection, slim and light, functional and comes in good colors.

What's Not: The cutout for the camera flash could be bigger. Screen protector doesn't line up with front layout and button.

Reviewed by Tong Zhang

Urban Armor Gear has brought their semi-rugged Composite Case to the new Samsung Galaxy S III Android smartphone. This lightweight case is form fitting, easy to use and currently comes in three colors: Black, White and Rust.

Design

The Urban Armor Gear Case for the Galaxy S III has a unique design that combines a rugged look and a slim form factor into a very functional and very easy to use case. The UAG case has a hard shell exterior and a soft impact resistance core. The hard shell is well machines and has reinforcement for all four corners and the top and bottom sides of the phone. The top and bottom pieces have some flexibility so that you can put the Galaxy S III in or take it out of the case without too much struggling. The hard shell provides good protection against bumps, scratches and nicks, and it also gives you a better grip for the slippery Galaxy S III. The UAG case doesn't have a soft touch lining on the interior, but nothing will leave marks on your phone when you handle it with the case.

When you have a phone that has a 4.8" display you'll want some protection for the screen. The UAG case provides two features to protect the screen. The case wraps around the sides of the phone and creates a barrier for the display when you put the phone face down. The case will touch the surface to keep your screen safe from scratches. The UAG also comes with a solid screen protector that covers the screen, though it doesn't line up with the front button, LED/sensor and camera with the cutouts. You can make custom cuts yourself to make it fit as there's some extra cover beyond the display size.

Features

The Urban Armor Gear case for the Samsung Galaxy S III is a very functional case. It has cutouts for the audio jack and the sync/charge port as well as both mics, and you should have no trouble using any audio cable, sync and charge cable with the phone while it's in the case. Since the case has reinforced top and bottom pieces, it creates some depth as it's thicker on both sides. This means the sync port sits deeper in the case and might not fit in audio speaker systems, alarm clocks and other accessories that don't have long connectors.

The case protects both the volume rocker and the power button on the Galaxy S III's sides. The raised buttons are easy to use yet not too easy to accidentally press. If you feel that it's easy to accidentally press one of these buttons on the naked phone, having the UAG case helps with that as it provides a better grip and stiffer buttons. The case has three cutouts on the back for the speaker, rear camera and flash. Like the case, the cutouts are well machined and look attractive. The cutouts for the camera and the speaker have perfect sizes but the cutout for the flash is just a hair to small to let the LED flash fully illuminate.

Conclusion

If you are on the market for a case that looks unique and masculine, the Urban Armor Gear Case fits the bill. The design is attractive and the case is light weighing only 1.4 oz. It provides good protection against daily wear and tear, and can also provide some shock protection should you drop your phone. We like that the case comes with a screen protector and has raised edges to protect the large display. The case has all the necessary cutouts and protects the buttons. We also like the color selections that match the color selection of the Galaxy S III except for the Garnet Red version that gets the Rust case which is a stunning color.